Facts and Figures

Headline Figures

• The off licensed sector market is 35.6% of the total alcohol market measured in money terms.
• This has grown from 19.1% is 1991 to 27.5% is 2000.
• 14.3% of beer is sourced within this segment.
• 41% of spirits expenditure is sold through off licenses.
• 75% of the combined wine and cider segment is sold through off-licenses.
• There are 4,000 jobs in off-licenses.

Distribution

• 9500 on licensed outlets
• Full time or part time jobs for 100K people
• 57000 full time job equivalents in on and off-licences and distribution
• According to CSO personal expenditure on beverages of €7.2B
• Growing off licence share; 36% of market value in 2006 
• Purchases of goods and services, excluding beverages of €803M
• An important element of the tourism product of Ireland
• Guinness Storehouse is largest fee charging visitor attraction in Ireland
• Average earnings and productivity are lower than services as a whole

Taxation

• Very high tax by EU standards
• €2151M in VAT and excise receipts
• Wine highest excise in EU
• Beer highest excise in EU
• Spirits 2nd highest in EU
• Cider 2nd highest in EU

Consumption

• Per capita and per adult consumption peaked in 2001 and declined in 2002 and 2003, Thereafter it has remained stable below the 2001 peak
• High by international standards but lower than the historic peak of many lower consumption countries
• Off-licence sector has 36% of expenditure on alcohol
• Growth driven by wine…non- wine consumption has declined by 3.1% between 2001 and 2007…wine volume increased by 66.9%

Trade

• €1297M in drinks exports in 2006
• €571M drinks trade surplus in 2006
• Drinks exports more than dairy in 2006 trade statistics
• 64% of domestic beer market supplied by domestic producers
• 86% of cider market supplied by domestic producers
• 56% of spirits market supplied by domestic producers